Just Because...

I have no reason for this post.  

No funny story. No special occasion. 

 I just really love this pic of Presley.  

Deep down, this is who she really is.

Even with her hair in little blonde pigtails, she's still one bad ass little girl!

School Bus!

I swore up and down that Presley would never ride the bus!

I mean seriously, who just let the school put their kid on the bus and hopes they make it home okay???

I did everything I could to stop this from happening...but as it turns out, I'm no match for Presley.  

She has been begging me to let her ride the bus home since before school even started.  I told her kindergarteners were not allowed to ride the bus.  That only lasted the first day when she saw that half her class were bus riders. 

 I told her that buses were hot and stinky and really loud.  That didn't last long either because all her friends at school and on our street told her how much fun the bus was. 

After weeks of begging, I told her that if she behaved all week, maybe I would consider letting her ride the bus on Friday afternoon.  Well, she was an angel all week long so I had no other choice. She got her way...we let her ride the bus home.

 Blaine came home early from work and we all walked down to the bus stop to wait for her. 

I had visions of Presley running off the bus crying.  As I scooped her up she would say "Mommy, you were so right. I should've listened to you. The bus is horrible. Please let me be a car rider again."

 

 Finally, we heard the loud rumble of the bus coming down the street.

As it pulled up, I was ready for whatever may come next. My feet were planted in a stance that would allow me to take off and run to her if she looks upset.

The bus stopped and the doors opened...

 I could see her orange shirt, but her face was still down.  

Was she crying? Was she scared?  I couldn't tell yet.

  

She finally made it down the steps of the bus.

 I was ready.  

The moment of truth of here.

And then I saw this...

 The biggest darn smile I have ever seen on this child.

There were no tears, no sobs, no "You were right, Mommy!".

Just pure joy!

First words out of her mouth were "I love the bus!!!!!"

 In fact, she loves it so much that she rides it to school now too! 

I tried fighting that one too, but at some point, when you know you're beat...you just gotta end the fight.

My sweet girl is growing up so fast and although I wish I could keep her a baby forever, I'm so proud of her independence. 

Way to go, Pres!!!

Wildlife Ranch

A couple of weeks ago, we decided to take advantage of living so far south and make the trip to the Wildlife Ranch just north of San Antonio.  It's like going to the zoo, but you get to stay in your car and feed the animals.  The kids were so excited!!

 

 For the first 5 or 10 minutes, all we saw were deer.  The kids weren't super impressed with them.  6 months ago they would've thought that was so cool, but we see deer every night in our backyard, so the novelty has kind of warn off.

 So we continued driving and waited to see some more animals.

 Then we spotted an ostrich!

Cool, right??? Um...no, super scary.  

This giant bird stuck his head in our car and stole the whole bag of animal food Blaine was holding.  I thought Beckett was going to have a heart attack.  It was pretty scary, so we rolled our windows up until we drove past this mean old bird!

 We saw zebras, llamas, camels, and lots of cool wild animals.  Aside from the ostrich, the kids loved it.

 After our seeing all the animals, we went inside for a potty break and grabbed a Slurpee!

  

 I would give anything if this picture had turned out clear.  This look just about sums up what Beckett is thinking most of the time!

 

 Next stop...feeding the goats!

 

 

 

 Lastly, we stopped for a little lunch in Wimberley before heading back home.

First Day of Kindergarten

I can't believe our little Presley is already a kindergartener!

She had a great first day and loves her new school.  I had a little bit of trouble letting her go that first day.  She had never gone to school all day every day before, but she had a blast and told us she wants to be in kindergarten for the rest of her life!  

Here are a few pics from her first morning of kinder.

 

Family Portraits 2014

 

 

 

Presley Turns 5!

Here's the very first picture of my sweet 5 year old!

 We started the day with our traditional birthday breakfast: birthday cake pancakes!

While we served up breakfast, Pres got to open her first present.

After a yummy plate of birthday pancakes, it was time for more presents!

 

 

 

 One of Presley and Beckett's favorite shows is "Peppa Pig".  Peppa and her brother, George, love to jump up and down in muddy puddles.  Pres has been begging up for months to get her a pair of rain boots so she can jump up and down in muddy puddles too just like Peppa.  She was beyond excited when she opened her rain boots!!!

 

 

 Of course, it wouldn't be fun to jump up and down in muddy puddles without your little brother...so Becks got a pair too!

 Pres got to do anything she wanted on her birthday.  Her first request, a trip to the Candy Jar to buy an umbrella she could color.  Next, playing in the water fountains at the Galleria, followed by a picnic lunch.  

After Daddy got home from work, it was time to celebrate with him with a glass of kid friendly bubbly!

 

 

  

 

 

 

  Next up, our traditional birthday dinner: French Toast!

In case you haven't figured it out by now, Presley really loves breakfast food!

And after dinner, the birthday girl requested to play outside in the  sprinklers.  She chose to keep her clothes on and get soaking wet.  I'll save you from the pictures of a streaking Beckett who thought his birthday suit would be a bit more appropriate for the occasion.

 

We ended the night with our final birthday tradition: reading "Happy Birthday To You" (AKA the Birthday Bird) and "The Day You Were Born". 

I can't believe my sweet baby is 5 years old! What a wonderful 5 years this has been.  

I love you, sweet Presley.

Happy Birthday!!!